Worried Thoughts
by NiennaAngel
Summary: BryanxLee Bryan and Lee are worried about each other and the future of their relationship. Can they make it all work? Twoshot
1. Worried Thoughts

I promised a BryanxLee to Alexys awhile ago and I just never got around to it. This is short, but that's okay because I'm making it a two shot. I just wanted to get this posted tonight. Read and review!

Dedicated to Alexys.

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Lee sat curled up in front of a large fire with his favorite fleece blanket wrapped around his shoulders. He was trying to meditate so that his worries would be temporarily out of his mind, but it was proving to be a more difficult task than he had first thought. There was a monsoon raging outside and his lover had yet to return from the airport after dropping off his friends. Lee opened his eyes to stare into the dancing flames and let them take over his thoughts. He quickly jumped to his feet when he heard the door open and close knowing that it had to be his lover.

Bryan started to the turn the corner only to be caught completely off-guard by a lion hugging him tightly. It took the falcon a second before he could respond and return the hug. "You should be sleeping. You have to leave early tomorrow morning" Bryan fussed softly over his lover. Lee shook his head as he buried his face in his Russian's chest purring softly in content at finally being back in his arms. Bryan pulled back and stared down at him curiously. "What are you saying 'no' to?"

"I'm not leaving tomorrow." Bryan raised an eyebrow, but didn't question his lion just then. Instead he lifted him off the floor with ease knowing full well that Lee wasn't at a proper weight, but no matter what Bryan said it never seemed to be enough to get Lee to gain back the weight. He sat down in front of the fire and draped the blanket over their legs. "You need to gain weight."

Lee sighed as he curled in Bryan's chest. "I am gaining weight. I've put on eight pounds in the two and a half weeks I've been here."

"That's not even half of what you lost between this visit and your last one. Lee, you know you can't do this to yourself." Bryan tilted Lee's head back so that their eyes could meet. "It's dangerous."

Lee sighed as he averted his eyes. "I know. That's why I'm not leaving tomorrow. I know I can't keep losing weight and gaining it back only to lose it again, but when I'm in the Hills I lose a desire to eat. I'm healthier hear than there and I want to be healthy so I'm just going to stay. I'm hoping to get back to where I was during the last tournament. That means gaining twenty-five pounds though."

Bryan kissed his lover's forehead gently. "You have obligations to your village though. Are you sure it's alright to leave it all behind?" Lee nodded as he let his eyes slip closed and nuzzled Bryan's chest. "You're exhausted aren't you?" Another nod was the Russian's only answer and it wasn't long before the lion was sound asleep in his arms. Carefully Bryan stood and carried Lee to their bedroom to tuck him in. He would be joining his lover shortly, but he really needed to take a shower first.

Standing beneath the hot stream of water he thought over what it would mean to have Lee live with him on a permanent basis. It would be good because it meant he wouldn't have to miss his lover anymore, but he wondered if they were really ready to live together. Their relationship was strong and Bryan didn't see that changing, but he hadn't seen Lee's decision to stay in Russia. His sensitive ears picked up movement outside the foggy glass shower door and knew that his extended shower had woken his lover. Lee really was an incredibly light sleeper who woke up at the slightest noise. The falcon didn't say anything, but turned his attention to washing his hair as he waited for the lion to slip into the shower with him. When he finished washing his hair and Lee hadn't joined him he turned off the water.

Lee was sitting on the sink counter staring at his hands with something clearly weighing heavily on his mind. "What's wrong?"

The lion looked up with a tortured look to his eyes that cracked Bryan's heart. "You don't want me to stay, do you?"

Bryan walked over and cupped Lee's face in his hands gently. "What the hell gave you that idea?"

"You've been avoiding coming to bed" he whispered softly. Bryan sighed and pulled Lee close. "Am I wrong?"

"Very wrong. I want you to live with me, Lee. It kills me every time you leave. I wasn't avoiding coming to bed. I just got lost in my thoughts and didn't realize how much time I had spent in the shower. I'm sorry if I made you worry." Lee shook his head as he breathed in Bryan's scent. "Go back to bed. I'll get dried off and join you shortly." Lee nodded before sliding off the sink and walking back to their bedroom. Bryan stared into the mirror frightened for the first time since he left the abbey. Lee wasn't acting like himself and it was a definite cause for worry. He quickly dried off his body and joined Lee in bed.

"You don't have to be worried about me. I had a bad encounter with a couple of jerks who didn't understand that I wasn't interested that's got me a little freaked out, but it's nothing to worry about." Lee snuggled into Bryan's chest with a sigh as he felt strong arms hold him close.

"It is something to worry about. They didn't hurt you, did they?" Bryan titled Lee's head back to look into bright orange orbs that stared up at him with slight fear.

"No, they didn't. I kicked on in the stomach and ran. I thought it was the best solution and they were pretty slow so they couldn't catch up to me." Lee buried his face in Bryan's shoulder signaling that he didn't want to continue that line of questioning any longer. Bryan gave in to his lover's silent request and placed a light kiss on top of his head.

"I love you."

"I love you too" Lee mumbled into Bryan's chest before drifting off to sleep again. Bryan smiled softly like he only did when they were alone. Lee knew that the falcon still felt a need to keep up barriers around other people and was content with the knowledge that he got to see the softer side of his Russian lover. Bryan in turn tried to be more open than he would be naturally so that his lover didn't feel there were secrets between them.

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Lee: I do not have weight issues!

Yes you do. You get depressed when seperated from Bryan so you stop eating. That's called an issue.

Lee: -glares-

Bryan: Let it go or she'll torture us in the next chapter.

You're so smart Bryan!

Bryan: -eyebrow twitching- I'm letting the sarcasm in that statement go.

Good idea. Please review!


	2. Culmination of a Life

Part 2! I hope you all enjoy this! Read and review! Thanks to those who reviewed!

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It had been months since Lee decided to stay in Russia with Bryan rather than go back to the Hills. His family and friends weren't letting him go easily though. Bryan sighed as he watched Lee read another letter from his grandfather listing all the reasons why the lion should return home including a reference to Bryan's battle with Ray that left the tiger hospitalized. That reason Lee fond incredibly ridiculous because Ray was one of the falcon's best friends and the couple's supporter. Lee tossed the multiple sheets of paper onto the table and rested his head in his hands. He really hadn't thought that it would be this big of a problem when it was so obvious that he could no longer be healthy when he was away from his lover. He lifted his head up to show Bryan a look in his eyes that expressed all of his confusion, annoyance and anger. Bryan could only offer a sympathetic smile because really there was nothing else he could do. He didn't have any family except for his friends and they supported the relationship in question. All the doubt and attempts to sever their bond were coming from the people that Lee loved and care for. Lee sighed and looked down at the letter again wondering how he was going to respond to this one. There were only so many ways he could express his unwavering desire and conviction to stay in Russia with the man he loved more than anything in the world. 

Bryan walked over and lifted Lee out of the kitchen chair and headed back towards their bedroom. Lee had gained back more of the weight he lost, but he still felt incredibly light to the falcon. The lion snuggled into Bryan's chest not content to have his lover leave his side. He wanted to just relax with Bryan, but he knew that really it wasn't in the cards just yet. Bryan had to work and he couldn't very well take the rest of the day off just to make Lee feel a little less lonely. Bryan placed a light kiss on his lover's lips before leaving. He wanted nothing more than to cuddle his heartbroken lion and make everything alright again, but the real world was getting in the way. He would have to e-mail Ray and ask him to come for a visit to keep Lee busy during they day while he was at work. Maybe that would also help Lee get back in the gym and working out if Ray was around to spar with. Bryan really didn't have energy at the end of the day to keep up with his fighting skills and often just lifted weights for twenty minutes and ran for thirty in the morning while Lee slept.

Lee was curled in a ball on the bed he shared with Bryan when he heard the door open, but a different smell then the one he was used to entered making him sit up. Ray walked in and smiled softly at his best friend. It wasn't hard for Lee to guess why Ray was there. He knew that Bryan was worried and that he had been shutting the falcon out, but he was still surprised that his lover had called Ray. He'd screwed up shutting Bryan out and his annoyed/worried friend standing in front of him was all the proof he needed. Ray sat down, pulled Lee close and whispered the reassuring words that the lion needed to hear the most. For a brief moment Lee wondered why it was he and Ray broke up only to catch sight of his lover's clothes hanging neatly in the closet. He had left the tiger for the falcon and in turn the tiger had given the lion up for a Spanish eagle. With a sigh and a smile Lee pulled away from his friend feeling much better about his decision to stay with Bryan even though his family and friends in the Hills disagreed with him so vehemently.

Their relationship was a rollercoaster ride that never really stopped. As they grew up and older together they had their spats and their doubts, but they never got off. They never walked away from the twisting, turning, frightening, thrilling ride that was their love affair. Their hearts were strung together with a thin red thread that was a strong as reinforced steel despite how fragile it sometimes felt. So when Lee fell ill when they were only in the mid-forties it created nothing but fear in Bryan's heart. The doctor's were having trouble coming up with a diagnosis and his precious lion was getting weaker and weaker. When the doctors finally diagnosed a rare neko-jin disease that doctors outside the neko community couldn't cure Bryan made up his mind. He made Lee promise to hang on until he got back and then boarded the next plane to China so that he could ask for help from the people that despised him more than anything. He took their golden child away; led their future leader into temptation and didn't let him go. Bryan needed their expertise though and he doubted they'd refuse to help Lee after twenty plus years. He was right. One of the village healers flew back with him to Russia and treated his lover if only in hopes of convincing Lee that it really was time to return to the village. Lee recovered quickly once he was being properly treated. The village healer begged and argued for him to return and lead White Tiger Village in a very convincing way. Bryan honestly began to doubt that Lee would continue to stay by his side. Lee stayed.

Lee stood staring down at the grave where his friends and family mourned his death. He sighed as he turned from the sad sight only to see something beautiful. He had lived too long after Bryan died from heart failure at 58. He knew his friends wouldn't agree because they had only buried Bryan three months earlier, but for Lee that was too long. He walked over and into the strong embrace of his lover. He was surprised to find them both so young. They looked like they did all those years ago when Lee had decided to stay with Bryan rather than go back to China. It was absolute perfection for both of them.

"I love you, Lee."

"I love you too, Bryan. We have the rest of eternity to share that love now."

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

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Bryan: Where did that come from? 

My imagination... it's a very interesting place.

Lee: Clearly.

-giggles- I had fun with that! Let me know what you think!


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